Metropolitan Opera House

Metropolitan Opera House, 116 S. 3rd St., ca. 1907
Metropolitan Opera House
116 S. 3rd St., ca. 1907

The “Met” is the most elaborate example of Richardsonian Romanesque style architecture in Grand Forks. Completed in 1890, with a final cost of $91,000, it was often described as the finest theatre between Minneapolis and Seattle. The round arched entrance and windows, the rough-faced squared stone work and the masonry walls epitomize Richardsonian Romanesque construction. Builders used Roman style brick, which is twelve inches long instead of the standard nine inches, and the column capitals are hand carved, each with a different motif.